


invitation to love

by bijyu



Category: UP10TION
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-15
Updated: 2016-05-15
Packaged: 2018-06-06 19:04:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6766084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bijyu/pseuds/bijyu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It might have happened during their first meeting when Dongyeol first smiled at him, or maybe the third when they first held hands; Wooseok is not sure. All he knows is that he fell in love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	invitation to love

**Author's Note:**

> partly inspired by a convo with nina about xiao's pink hair and cotton candy. :) this was supposed to have a bit of a modern fairytale like feeling but instead it turned out to be a plain college au orz.

 

When Wooseok first sees the kid, he doesn't think much of it. He's sitting at a table in a newly opened coffee shop, having decided to make use of their discount coupons and study here instead of the library. He's going through a particularly difficult reading when he hears something clack against the floor somewhere around his feet. He blinks, startled, wondering if he pushed something off the table, and he leans down to check the floor. There's something small and red lying between his feet.  

 "Excuse me?" He hears as he reaches for it. "I dropped my flash drive!"

Wooseok picks it up; it's a small, strawberry shaped usb stick. How cute, he thinks, picking it up.

The first thing he notices about the kid standing over him is his hair— it's dyed baby pink.

"Here," he says, handing him the flash drive, trying not to stare too intently at the fluffy mop of pink hair. The next thing he notices is the guy’s smile; it seems to take over his whole face, unrestrained and dazzling.

"Thank you!" The boy takes the usb stick with both his hands, bowing to him politely. Seems like he's very well-mannered, funky hair color or not. Wooseok makes a mental note to bring him up next time his parents get too judgmental about 'young people these days'. He watches the guy sit back down at his table and plug the flash drive into his laptop before he realizes he has no time to space out and focuses on his reading again.

When he's finished the boy is already gone— both from the coffee shop and from Wooseok's thoughts.

 

-

 

The next time they meet, the boy leaves a lasting impression on him. Wooseok is in the park with his niece; something came up at his sister's work and since he has no classes today, he offered to pick Sana up from preschool and take her to the park.

Sana is a very bright girl, determined to become a veterinarian, and, as they play in the sandbox, she's enthusiastically showering Wooseok with information on dog breeds, prompted by the dogs they see in the park. But during an explanation of the origins of welsh corgis she suddenly stops and tugs at Wooseok's sleeve, making him look up from the turtle he was trying to mold in the sand.

"Oppa, look," she says, pointing somewhere to the side, behind the swings; Wooseok follows her hand with his eyes. "It's a cotton candy stand!"

And indeed it is. There's a woman with two kids in front of it; one of the kids is already holding a stick with an impressively big sugary cloud on it. But more than the candy, Wooseok is interested in the vendor. It's a young guy with a fluffy mop of pale pink hair, dressed in a bright yellow pullover and blue overalls. The outfit is atrocious— it's probably meant to attract attention, as if the boy's pink hair wasn't enough— but it somehow suits the guy, goes well with his boyish charm. The hair looks familiar, and so does the face. Wooseok could swear he's already seen him somewhere.

Without much thought, he takes Sana's hand and leads her towards the stand. She doesn't protest, probably tempted by the prospect of eating something sweet.

"Look, you can buy a pink one too!" she exclaims excitedly. Wooseok watches the guy smile brightly at the other kid, handing him a candy stick, and it hits him, a clear memory of where he last saw that sunny smile. In the cafe. It's the boy who dropped his usb stick.

"Does the pink one have a different taste?" Sana asks as soon as she approaches the stand. The guy looks at her, his grin fading into a regular— but still pretty, Wooseok finds himself thinking— smile.

"That depends on how you look at it," he replies. "To me, for example, strawberry ice cream wouldn't taste the same if it wasn't pink, you know?"

Wooseok has no idea how that is supposed to explain anything but Sana seems appeased. "I'd like the pink one!" She turns to give Wooseok a pleading stare, tugs at his sleeve again. "Oppa, can you buy me some?"

"Hmm." Wooseok tilts his head, pretends to consider. "I don't know, will you show us some aegyo?" He's just teasing; he knows Sana hates doing aegyo. But, to his surprise, without any fussing, she makes a flower pose and gives him a what looks like a well-practiced pout.

"Oppa, pretty please~"

Wooseok blinks at her, surprised. Did she learn that at school?

"Wow, no one would be able to resist that! You're almost as good as me." The seller boy's eyes are twinkling with mirth as he briefly mimics the pose, making Sana giggle. Wooseok tries not to stare; he lowers his gaze to the candy machine. "I'm tempted to give you one for free."

"Ah, no, that won't be necessary," Wooseok protests. "I'll pay."

The vendor boy looks at him properly for the first time and instantly, a frown appears on his face. He quickly brightens up again, though. "One pink candy stick, coming right up!" he announces merrily.

A moment later, they're walking away from the stand, Sana happily stuffing her face with candy. Wooseok's still contemplating the strange feeling he got from the boy's fingers brushing against his when he was giving him change money. He doesn’t even know the guy so where did that tingling sensation come from? Wooseok isn't the type to fall in love at first sight and yet, there was something...

"Oppa," Sana speaks up suddenly, pulling him out of his thoughts. "Was that mister's hair made of pink cotton candy too?"

Wooseok smiles at that; the idea is adorable in its ridiculousness. "That's very possible," he answers seriously. "I'm pretty sure it must have been."

 

-

 

A few months pass before he sees the boy again. It's already October, and a cold one too; the temperature has drastically dropped after a still hot September. It's not surprising that many people ended up getting sick. Wooseok would be grateful for his strong immune system except this is how he ended up getting dragged to a skating rink. Ice skating isn't Wooseok's thing at all but Minsoo didn't want to go alone and all their friends were down with a cold.

"It'll be fun, you'll see!" Minsoo assured him. "I'll teach you, don't worry!"

Despite his promise, Minsoo left him alone on the rink in favor of catching up with a high school friend he'd met. Wooseok's self-preservation sense is usually on alert but it failed him this time, as he decided that hell, it can't be this hard and he might as well try to learn if he's already here. Needless to say, he soon ended up falling on his butt, rather pathetically and very painfully.

He feels his face turn warm with embarrassment; the two girls passing him really could have helped him instead of giggling at him. He sits there miserably, trying to come up with a strategy on how to get up with those hellish things on his feet when someone— a young guy— slides over to him.

"Need help?" The boy leans down, reaching his hand out to him. For a second Wooseok just stares at him— he can see strands of pink hair peeking out of the guy's white woolen hat. He remembers that hair— and the face, the wide grin, the cute eye smile. He grabs the boy's hand and is swiftly pulled back to his feet. The boy's other hand stays on his arm, as if he's concerned (not without reason) that Wooseok might fall again.

"Thank you," he says. The boy shakes his head with a light, dismissive hum.

"Is this your first time skating?"

"Yeah. My friend was supposed to teach me but he disappeared somewhere." He smiles. "Didn't end well for me, as you could see."

The guy laughs. "You will get the hang of it faster than you think, don't worry!"

Wooseok stares at the boy's smiling face; it's definitely the cotton candy guy. How come he was able to meet one person so often in such a big city? Or maybe he does see other people just as frequently, only he doesn't remember them. After all, they don't all have baby pink hair. Or maybe— maybe it's just that they don't have such a cute smile.

"We've seen each other before," he says. The boy blinks at him curiously. "Um…" Wooseok rubs the back of his neck. He usually has no problem being straightforward but this is awkward. The guy might find him creepy or something. "You probably don't remember me, but—"

"I remember." The boy tilts his head, studying him with a playful smile. "It's hard to forget a face like yours."

"Oh." Wooseok is genuinely surprised. Both with the fact that the boy remembers, and that he considers him good looking. He hears that a lot from people and he usually doesn't care, but now he feels pleasant warmth spread inside his chest. "Thank you. It's also difficult to forget… hair like yours." He almost said 'a smile' but he decided that would be too much. The boy is just being nice; he's not flirting with him. Or is he?

The guy's response is laughter— warm and honest, lighting up his whole face. Wooseok catches himself thinking he'd love to be able to make this boy laugh on daily basis.

"I'll take that as a compliment. My name is Lee Dongyeol, by the way. I'm 19 years old. In case we run into each other again," he adds jokingly.

"That makes me your hyung." Wooseok smiles. "I'm 21. The name is Kim Wooseok, nice to meet you."

He's not surprised the boy is younger than him; he does look young with that cute white hat, a matching scarf and an oversized, fluffy sweater. Wooseok has a strong urge to hug him. Sadly, he knows people aren't plush toys and you can't hug them just because they're adorable.

"Wooseokie hyung," Dongyeol says and Wooseok tries not to think about how much he likes hearing that and why. "Since your friend is still not here and it seems like neither is mine, do you want me to teach you?"

Wooseok sees no reason to refuse. A reason appears when Dongyeol takes his hands in his and Wooseok realizes it might be hard for him to focus on; even through Dongyeol's fluffy white mittens he can feel the secure grip of his hands and the warmth of his skin.

Dongyeol is good. He has no problem skating backwards, pulling Wooseok along with him. He's full of energy and keeps encouraging Wooseok, not at all bothered by his mistakes.

"Come on, you can do it hyung~"

Wooseok still ends up landing on his ass a few times but the number of times he avoids it thanks to Dongyeol helping him catch his balance is much bigger. Despite the cold, his face feels warm and he knows he's spacing off too much, staring at Dongyeol. The boy keeps smiling brightly, his eyes twinkling, his cheeks flushed from the cold. By now Wooseok is sure he is the prettiest person he has ever seen.

Despite the distractions, he does learn the basics surprisingly fast.

"Wow, you're doing great!" Dongyeol claps his hands excitedly as he watches him finally skate on his own. "Nice, nice!" He gives him a thumbs up.

"Still nothing compared to you," Wooseok responds with a small smile, stopping in front of him. "You're very good."

"You learned so fast, though! You should have seen me at first. I ended up bruising my tail bone so bad I couldn't walk for a week." Dongyeol laughs at his own words but Wooseok stays quiet, just staring at him. He wants to ask— for something, his number or maybe to meet again, but all of sudden, his mind turns blank.

"Oh!" Dongyeol's eyes suddenly fix on something over Wooseok's shoulder. "That's my… my friend, at last!" He waves in that direction but Wooseok isn't curious, he doesn't turn around.

"Do you think we can maybe meet again?"

"I sure hope so!" Dongyeol is smiling but his attention is clearly already elsewhere. "See you, hyung!" And with that he glides away towards the rink entrance. Well, that didn’t go well, Wooseok thinks. He finally turns around to look at Dongyeol's acquaintance, briefly considering joining them to ask for a contact number. But if the pause before _friend_ didn’t already make him overly suspicious, the way Dongyeol greets the guy— with a peck to his cheek— definitely does.

Wooseok bites his lip and tries to ignore the crushing feeling of disappointment as he turns to make another round around the rink.

 

-

 

Minsoo's way of making up for leaving him alone at the rink is inviting him to go clubbing. It takes him two months to convince Wooseok to come— it's not like he hates clubbing but it's not his favorite activity, either. Plus he's especially busy these days, too tired for anything more than playing games at home. When Minsoo finally succeeds in dragging him out he ends up leaving him again in favor of some friends he met at an English language course. Wooseok swears to never go out with him again.

He buys himself a drink and heads to sit in one of the empty boxes, but as he approaches the table he notices it's not empty after all. There's someone sitting in the corner, sipping on a drink through a red straw. Someone with baby pink hair.

"Dongyeol-ah?" he calls out over the loud club music.

The person looks up at him— it's definitely him. He looks startled for a moment, as if pulled out of his thoughts, but he instantly brightens up.

"Hyung! Hey, what are you doing here?"

"Can I sit here?" Wooseok asks instead of answering. Dongyeol nods, patting the seat next to him.

"Sure! I'm here alone…"

"Aren't you underage though?" Wooseok places his drink on the table and sits down next to the other boy. Dongyeol raises an eyebrow at him.

"Don't tell me you've never gone clubbing when you were still underage."

Wooseok actually hadn't but he decides that's beside the point.

"Don't drink too much," he warns simply. Dongyeol just snorts.

"Okay, mom." He takes another sip of his drink. Wooseok wonders if it's his first; his face is flushed, eyes hazy. Is he already drunk? Maybe he's just a lightweight but either way, Wooseok should watch over him.

"So what brings you here?" Dongyeol asks.

"A friend. Same one that made me go ice skating. As you can see, he left me again."

"Wow," Dongyeol seems amused. "What a lousy friend."

Indeed, Wooseok thinks. "What about you?"

There's a moment of silence— if you can call it silence with the loud music resonating thorough the whole room— before Dongyeol answers.

"I just wanted to relax, I guess." He smiles brightly. The answer seems dismissive but Wooseok's not the type to press. "Wanna go dance?"

Wooseok shakes his head with a smile. "I'd need to drink more than that."

"Then hurry!" Dongyeol pushes Wooseok's drink towards him. He takes it and drinks some— it's strong but he purposely ordered a strong one. His alcohol tolerance is annoyingly good.

"Do you still work at the cotton candy stand?" he asks, mostly to keep the conversation going. He's been wondering about it; it's a pretty unusual job for someone who's probably a university freshman.

"Oh, no!" Dongyeol laughs. "That was just for a week. I was helping out the auntie next door... it was fun, though." He pauses, stirring the ice cubes in his drink with a straw. "I normally work at a music store."

That makes sense. A place like that probably wouldn't mind Dongyeol's unusual hair color. "Your hair…" he says, unconsciously reaching out to touch it. It feels soft, surprisingly so for how it must have been bleached over and over. "It's soft…" he mumbles before he can stop himself.

"I take good care of it." Dongyeol seems happy with the compliment but Wooseok still feels flustered for just saying it out like that; he withdraws his hand.

"But why always pink?"

"I don't know." Dongyeol tilts his head. "It just makes me happy when I look in the mirror. Also thanks to it, you recognized me when we met. Isn't that a good thing?" He touches his hair. "It's cute, isn't it? Or do you think it's weird?"

"It suits you," he replies genuinely. "It's... very cute."

Dongyeol beams at him, and Wooseok thinks the sight is worth all the embarrassment he feels. "Glad you think so!" His smile falters though as he picks up his drink. He drinks fast, with an absent look in his eyes; it makes Wooseok wonder.

The silence that falls after is awkward but it doesn't last long— Dongyeol places his now empty glass on the table and rises to his feet.

"Come on!" he says, reaching his hand out. "Let's dance!"

 

_

 

They dance through at least ten songs so they're completely out of breath when they push their way back to their seats through the now much more crowded club. Wooseok can't help but be conscious of the strong grip Dongyeol has on his hand, it's pretty much the only thing he can think about, aside from the way Dongyeol looked on the dance floor, sweaty and flushed and laughing, and the way he pressed against him from time to time, his eyes sparkling with mischief. It wasn't really sexual, it was all just for fun, he knows, but it still made him feel giddy.

When they get to their seats it turns out they're already taken, though. Dongyeol turns to him and says something Wooseok doesn't catch over the music and other people's voices, and then he takes his hand again, pulling him to a room on their left. It's a smoking area, Wooseok realizes as soon as they enter, the heavy, unpleasant scent of smoke filling his nostrils, getting stuck in his throat. It's quieter here and he can hear Dongyeol cough lightly as he drops down on a couch by one of the free tables.

"Seems like there's no space anywhere else," he says. "Hope you don't mind," he adds, looking at Wooseok with a soft smile.

"It's fine." Wooseok smokes occasionally, and he remembers he has cigarettes on him now, but from the way Dongyeol pulls his sleeve over his hand and covers his nose with it, it's obvious that he hates the scent. "Want to buy more drinks?" he fishes his wallet out of the back pocket of his jeans. "I'll pay but you go buy them."

"Ah, pulling the hyung card?" Dongyeol teases but he takes the money and gets to his feet. "What would you like?"

Wooseok shrugs. "Whatever you buy for yourself. And a bottle of water," he adds as an afterthought. Dongyeol salutes him playfully and turns to leave. Wooseok pulls out his phone before flopping down on the couch.

He has two new messages, both from Minsoo.

 _where are you??_ says the first one, and then, _saw you with the cute guy. you better give me all the details later ;)_

Wooseok groans inwardly; Minsoo being nosy is the last thing he needs. Wooseok loves the guy, he really does, but he can be a bit too much sometimes. If Minsoo's assumptions were anything close to the truth, Wooseok would have already slept with half the city. He may be bisexual, but that doesn't mean he wants to have sex with everyone.

And Dongyeol... He finds him attractive, for sure, and he likes him. But mostly, he just wants to get to know him better.

He has the opportunity when Dongyeol comes back with their drinks. He finds out that Dongyeol doesn't study, that he decided to take a break after high school and work instead. Dongyeol explains that he's not sure what he wants to do yet, and that he decided to give himself time to think it over.

"It's better than worrying uselessly, right? And I can save some money," he explains cheerfully. Wooseok finds he really likes the optimistic approach. Dongyeol is just the kind of a person most people want to have around— the kind that makes you believe life isn't so difficult.

Wooseok doesn't especially enjoy studying economy, but it seemed like the reasonable choice. He isn't sure if he'd make that choice again, though.

"I think it's never too late to start over if you really want to," Dongyeol muses, "but my sis tells me I only have the comfort to believe that because I'm still very young." He scrunches his nose up. "I'm not looking forward to becoming older if that means I'll be so pessimistic."

Wooseok chuckles at that. "I think life won't be able to wear someone like you out so easily."

As the conversation goes on and they drink more, Wooseok finds himself paying less attention to the words and more to the way Dongyeol's lips move, how plump they are, how he bites his bottom lip and how he pouts. His own lips tingle with the alcohol he's drunk and he feels like kissing. He feels like kissing Dongyeol. And the feeling only intensifies when Dongyeol smiles while telling an anecdote about his dog; it's really such a cute smile and his lips look so soft, they would probably feel so good against Wooseok's—

Fuck, he really needs to get a grip.

He tells himself that but instead of backing off, he feels himself moving closer. The next thing he knows he's pressing a kiss to Dongyeol's cheek. The latter goes quiet but doesn't move away so Wooseok goes lower, for the curve of his mouth. It feels so good, their lips brushing against each other— Wooseok has had his share of kisses in his life but he doesn't remember any of them to be this electrifying. Dongyeol exhales shakily when they briefly pull apart and then makes a small sound as their lips press together again. Wooseok feels the hot wetness of Dongyeol's mouth only for a short moment, barely tastes him, before Dongyeol turns his face away and breaks the kiss.

"What—" he pushes Wooseok away, his eyes wide. "What the fuck are you doing?"

Wooseok wants to defend himself— say that Dongyeol was flirting with him, that he returned the kiss— but he's not this childish and he can see Dongyeol is about to freak out so instead he says, "I'm sorry." He drops his eyes, embarrassment suddenly washing over him. "I should have asked first… sorry."

"No, I— it's—" Dongyeol pauses; he seems bewildered. "I should probably go," he says finally. Wooseok looks up at him, alarmed, and reaches to catch his wrist.

"Let me walk you out." He doesn't want them to part on bad terms. He fully expects Dongyeol to refuse but instead, his response is a short nod and a smile. Sighing in relief, he tentatively smiles back before standing up and gently pulling Dongyeol towards the exit.

 

-

 

"Shit, I feel five times more drunk now," Dongyeol mumbles. They've left the club and they're slowly walking away from the crowd gathered in front of it. Dongyeol is shivering even in his jacket, wrapping his arms around himself in an attempt to keep warm. Wooseok has the urge to hug him but he doesn't; things are awkward enough between them as it is.

"You don't have to walk me all the way home," Dongyeol says as they reach the crossroads. There's a joking tone to his voice but Wooseok can sense that he wants to be left alone.

"That guy, at the ice rink… was that your boyfriend?"

Dongyeol doesn't seem surprised by the question. He looks to the side, a small, tired smile on his face. Wooseok thinks he looks especially pretty in the street light they've stopped under— but he'd much prefer to see him genuinely cheerful.

"Yeah… It's my boyfriend. Or maybe was." He gives a short laugh that doesn't sound happy at all. "I'm not sure anymore."

Wooseok has no idea what to say to that. He recalls how fast Dongyeol was drinking, how eager to have fun he was. And he'd come to the club alone, as if it was a spur of a moment decision. Maybe his purpose was to forget something bad that happened.

"Did something happen?"

Dongyeol shakes his head. "Not much. Everything's f-fine." He sniffs then rubs at his eye; Wooseok can clearly see it's not fine at all. "Fuck, I really had too much to drink, didn't I?" He's quiet for a moment, only sniffing, breathing evenly as if he's trying to calm down. "I always try to tell myself everything is all right, even if it's obvious it's not true…" He wipes his eyes with his sleeves, his breath turning jarred. "I'm such an idiot." 

"You're not. It's not a bad thing to be optimistic," Wooseok tells him, once again ignoring the need to just pull him into a hug, "but you shouldn't run away from your problems, either."

"It's just… so hard…" Dongyeol sighs. "God, I'm sorry, this is so embarrassing." He chuckles. "I drank too much."

"It's okay." Wooseok gives him a reassuring smile. "I'm glad we could meet again."

Dongyeol looks at him with his brows furrowed, seems like he wants to say something, but then his expression relaxes into a smile.

"Thank you," he says softly, giving Wooseok's hand a light squeeze. "See you later, hyung."

It's only a few minutes later, when he's already on his way home, that Wooseok realizes he still hasn't gotten Dongyeol's number.

 

-

 

The next time they meet is not a coincidence anymore. Wooseok can't stop thinking about Dongyeol; he realizes he genuinely likes him and even if he has no chance to date him, he wants them to be friends. Then it occurs to him that there's no point waiting for another chance meeting. He has no idea what mysterious force kept bringing them together but it might not ever work again. He decides to take the matters into his own hands.

The first place he tries is the cotton candy stand but the lady behind it tells him Dongyeol had moved about a week ago.

"Such a sweet, bright child," she says, nodding her head solemnly. "He always fed the stray cats. I will miss seeing him around."

Then he tries asking at the coffee shop they first saw each other, and he finds something he wasn't expecting there.

"Seems like your pink haired friend is looking for you too," the barista tells him with a smile, "since he requested for me to hand this if someone matching your description asked for him."

He's given a small envelope. When he opens it later he finds a phone number and address inside, along with a short message: _I'd like to see you again!! ^-^_  


And this is how Wooseok finds himself in front of Dongyeol's apartment, trying his best to calm his nerves a little before ringing the doorbell. He texted Dongyeol asking if he could come and the reply was _anytime you want today!!^^_ so it's not like his arrival will be a surprise. Still, he feels antsy, but he supposes it's a normal reaction when meeting someone you like.

When he finally rings the door, he hears a muffled thud from the inside, as if something fell over, and then a slightly panicked but familiar voice: "Just a second, I'm coming!"

He waits and a moment later the door finally opens. Dongyeol's hair is tousled, and there's something shiny— confetti?— sticking to his sweater, but he's grinning happily and Wooseok's heart jumps at the sight.

"Hello, hyung," he says warmly, "I'm glad you came."

"Hi." Wooseok hands him the plastic bag he's been holding— he brought some snacks on his way— and starts unbuttoning his coat. His fingers are still numb from the cold and a little clumsy. "It's fruit and pastry," he says and Dongyeol peeks into the bag curiously.

"Ah, a melon, my favorite!" He beams at Wooseok. "Um, you can hang the coat here. And sorry about the mess. The place is tiny, so..."

The apartment consist of a kitchen, bathroom and a bedroom, but despite Dongyeol's warning, it's not messy, unless you count the fairly big Christmas tree placed in the middle of the bedroom, surrounded by a chaos of papers, carton boxes and ornaments. Wooseok almost trips as his foot gets tangled in silver angel hair— so this is the shiny thing got stuck to Dongyeol's sweater, he thinks, not confetti.

"I thought I'd finish before you arrive," Dongyeol rubs the back of his neck with an apologetic smile, "but this is way more complicated than I thought." He pouts. "Back at home mom used to do it. But I really wanted one of my own since I got my own place and all. I love Christmas, you see."

Wooseok smiles. "That's fine, I'll be happy to help."

As far as Wooseok knows, Christmas trees usually have certain color themes— for example red and gold, or silver and blue. Dongyeol has ornaments in all kinds of colors, and it's obvious there's too much of them to hang them all but it only makes dressing the tree more fun.

Once they're done, Dongyeol decides they deserve to eat some cake and drink hot chocolate before they clean the remaining ornaments up.

"It's pretty," Wooseok says as they sit on the sofa (which also serves as a bed when you unfold it, Dongyeol explains), sipping the hot chocolate. The tree indeed looks beautiful, even though, if he has to be fair, there's no logic or pattern to the way they decorated it. Wooseok thinks it may be exactly why it's so charming, though.

"Isn’t it?" Dongyeol sounds happy. Wooseok turns to look at him, takes in his tousled hair, shining eyes and the small, content smile stretched over his lips. He thinks Dongyeol is very pretty too.

"What?" Dongyeol asks with a grin when he turns his head and catches Wooseok staring at him. He doesn’t answer; instead he reaches out and brushes a strand of angel hair away from his head. Dongyeol lowers his eyes, unable to stop smiling. Wooseok can see his ears have turned a little red.

"I was really happy, you know," he says softly. He doesn't move away when Wooseok, mesmerized by the soft, pink strands, starts to play with his hair. "When you said you liked my hair. It was right after an argument with my boyfriend— ex, that is. He said he'd hated it all along, that it was embarrassing in public." He bites his lip. "It's just hair, I know, I could change it. But that's not why we started arguing and… why should I change for him, anyway?"

Wooseok doesn't say anything but he watches Dongyeol intently, letting him know he's listening.

"For quite a while, he's been cold. Avoiding meetings, avoiding signs of affection. I thought that he needed space. That if I just keep being myself he'll keep loving me, I mean, he fell in love with me the way I was, right? But everything I did annoyed him. I was hurt, but I told myself it was okay the way it was." He sighs. "It really wasn't. Turned out he already liked someone else and kept me around in case things didn't work out with that person. So he'd have someone to— you know."

"Sorry to say that, but he was an asshole."

Dongyeol huffs a short laugh but Wooseok can see his eyes are glossed over and sad. It hurts him to see him like this; by now he's sure this boy deserves nothing but happiness.

"I guess he was, wasn't he?" Dongyeol pouts. "I thought I knew him well, and yet… this happened." He takes a deep breath. "But I'm fine now!" He beams at Wooseok as if to prove it. "I broke up with him that night. I tried to be fair— I even told him about the… the kiss." It's as if the tension in the air skyrockets at the word; Wooseok swallows thickly, wondering if Dongyeol can feel it too. If he can, he doesn't let it show. "That I'm, um, not perfect either, and I can't love him if he treats me that way…" he trails off, falls silent for a moment. "So I guess… I wanted to thank you."

Wooseok pats his head. "You're welcome. Although I really didn't do much."

They smile at each other for a moment, and once again, Wooseok has the urge to kiss Dongyeol. He can remember their first kiss all too vividly, even though he was tipsy back then. The memory makes the blood rush in his veins.

"Too bad," Dongyeol speaks slowly, his eyes searching, unsure, despite the playful tone, "that I didn't buy mistletoe…"

"I think we don't need any," Wooseok says and leans in to press his lips to Dongyeol's.

 

-

 

"Are you always this cuddly, hyung?" Dongyeol asks some time later, amusement ringing in his voice. They're sitting on the sofa watching Zootopia on Dongyeol's laptop. Since Wooseok didn't have any reason to stop himself from hugging Dongyeol anymore, he didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around him and press to him as close as possible, resting his head on his shoulder. He's already almost sitting in his lap, one of his legs thrown over Dongyeol's, but he can't help himself, really. It just feels so nice, Wooseok loves the warmth of his skin seeping through his clothes, and his scent surrounding him.

Maybe because Dongyeol is so bubbly and adorable, he— completely unreasonably, he must admit— assumed he'd smell like something sweet, baby powder, bubblegum or strawberries. Instead he faintly smells like cologne— the sharp scent worn out thorough the day— and freshly washed clothes, with something sweeter beneath it too, right on his skin, perhaps body lotion or his just natural scent. Wooseok decides he likes that composition of scents way more than something as plain as strawberry bubblegum.

"Do you mind?" he asks quietly, because, as much as he likes hugging Dongyeol, he doesn't want to make him uncomfortable.

"No!" Dongyeol protests immediately. "It's just that, it's a bit surprising. You seemed kind of reserved, you know?"

"I am with some people. But I like you," Wooseok responds, convinced that fully explains things. He feels Dongyeol's body shake slightly with laughter, and then Dongyeol tangles his hand in his hair and pets it gently. It feels good, calming. Wooseok buries his face in Dongyeol's sweater with a pleased sigh; he's not really watching the movie anymore but it's okay, being close to someone like this is so nice.

"That's cute, hyung. You're cute."

Wooseok hums. He believes Dongyeol calling someone else cute is like a snowman accusing others of being cold, yet he still can't help but smile hearing the compliment.

"Can I tell you something?" Dongyeol asks suddenly. "Promise me you won't laugh."

"I'm not easily amused," Wooseok says seriously, which in turn makes Dongyeol chuckle. He smiles; he likes hearing him laugh so much.

"For a while I thought you were my guardian angel."

That sounds ridiculous indeed, Wooseok has to agree.  "Why...?"

"Because… do you remember when we met first?"

"In the coffee shop?"

"No. Earlier. But I'm not surprised you don't remember, I was wearing a hat and a face mask—"

"You were that guy who lost his wallet?" Wooseok is genuinely surprised.

"So you remember!" Dongyeol sounds happy. "You gave me money for a subway ticket. And each time I met you, you seemed to help me out somehow, or just cheer me up. And you're so pretty. So I thought, maybe you're not human?" He laughs a little, sounding embarrassed. Wooseok feels flustered too. People might praise his looks, but he's never had anyone say something like that to him. "But then you kissed me, and… well, it definitely felt like you were human."

Wooseok pulls back to look at Dongyeol; his flushed cheeks and sheepish smile are both adorable and amusing.

"You said you wouldn't laugh!"

"I'm not laughing," Wooseok assures, biting his lip to keep himself from grinning. "But I might have to kiss you again so you stop talking and embarrassing us both."

Dongyeol snorts. "Let me help you with that," he says, cupping Wooseok's cheek and leaning in for another kiss.

And as their lips meet, Wooseok can say for sure that he's glad they didn't leave things to fate. It still remains a mystery how come they met by chance so often. Maybe they are soulmates and it was meant to be? He wonders, if they didn't seek each other out, would they meet again? And if so, how soon? Would they still get together?

Thankfully, he doesn't have to worry about that, because Dongyeol is here with him, with his fluffy pink hair and his dazzling smile, and Wooseok is not planning to let him go ever again.

 

 

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